#GirlBossMonday with Stephanie Ledigo

It’s that time of the week again: #GirlBossMonday!

Stephanie Ledigo is the founder of Ledigo PR in Manchester, which provides first class PR and events, to industries including Health, Fitness, Beauty, Wedding and Celebrity clients. She tells us how she started in the PR industry and the importance of interning and gaining first hand experience.

The reason I conduct these interviews is to inspire you, my readers, and fellow PR students to be successful in your careers and business leaders of the future. I have asked the important questions to gain an insight of how these #GirlBosses made it to where they are today, and how we can emulate their successes.

Here’s to strong women. May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.

OC: Hi Steph! An easy question to start us off (I hope) – What is your full job title?

SL: I am the owner of Ledigo PR.

Can you give me a background of your career and education? How did this lead you to be in your PR position today?

I worked from 14 in PR and looking back, I used to run fan sites for bands and create strategies to promote them without even realising.

I then went on to do work experience at the BBC in London, and I remember being so nervous that I didn’t speak for the first day. The manager I worked for just assumed I wasn’t bothered and was quite rude to me. The next day I went in armed with questions and told her of my interests. She then let me do much more and I ended up learning so much.

I left John Moores University 5 months into my media and music degree and started interning for magazines. I learnt so much about how to make an impression during these times. I worked for free for around a year. I would recommend interning to anyone. I used to wait until the editor would get into the elevator and talk to him when he couldn’t get away!

I did various PR roles and then took again an intern role working for Key 104 and my boss at that time was Trevor Jordan. Trevor is the reason I am a good boss today. He was the breakfast show producer. We started work at 5am and we worked hard. He taught me how to speak to people, how to run an event and how to do whatever we were required to do with a smile. All of this was so important.

I started Ledigo PR in 2013 with the aim to provide affordable PR to small businesses. It is my absolute joy and I love working every single day! We have grown extremely fast due to our loyal and amazing clients and we hope to continue to do so.

What do you find most rewarding and challenging about your role in PR?

The most challenging is managing people’s expectations and explaining what PR actually is. I would say a lot of people aren’t sure. It’s also challenging to have a normal life when you have busy clients as you have to sacrifice a lot.

The most rewarding is seeing a client make money or get in the press. I love doing private events for individuals too as you can see the joy on their faces first hand.

If you were to hire someone for a PR role, what skills and qualities would your ideal candidate have?

I only hire people who want to know about how they can work hard before they ask about money. I like honest and loyal people who understand PR is not a 9-5 job. If our client wants something, we do it and that’s the attitude I want.

What advice would you give to a student like myself that wants to emulate your success and make it in the PR industry?

Intern in as many areas as you can. Ask questions, don’t be phased or obsessed with celebrities. Work as hard as you physically can. Get up early! Find a mentor and do whatever they tell you to do!